A new consortium of leading 3D printing companies was announced at Formnext 2024. The aim is to tackle the most pressing challenges manufacturers face when introducing and scaling 3D printing technology for industrial use. This collaboration is called "Leading Minds" and brings together industry leaders such as Ansys, EOS, HP, Materialise, Nikon SLM, Renishaw, Stratasys and Trumpf.
Leading Minds is a joint initiative of Ansys, EOS, HP, Materialise, Nikon SLM, Renishaw, Stratasys and Trumpf in the field of 3D printing. With a shared vision for the future of manufacturing, the consortium's mission is to realize the full potential of 3D printing technology
Cooperation and agreement on the same dimensions and requirements, in principle standardization, have always been at the beginning of major technological breakthroughs. The steam engine is a prime example, where the critical factor for success was the standardization of rivet bolts, pressure vessels and material testing. Two hundred years later, another technological innovation is struggling with coordination problems between the individual manufacturers and along the entire process chain. And this is precisely where FormNext 2025 has made a decisive impact. A consortium of leading (western) printer manufacturers and software providers has been formed. This consortium aims to overcome many of the barriers that still hinder the industrial adoption of 3D printing, enabling manufacturing companies to integrate and scale 3D printing solutions more effectively. The consortium's first initiative aims to create a common language framework for 3D printing.
From niche innovation to mass production
3D printing has proven itself in various industries by transforming product design and offering highly customized solutions today, the consortium members agree. However, 3D printing is still in transition from a niche innovation to mass production. In order to achieve a breakthrough in large-scale production, the industry must first overcome its skepticism and deliver concrete, scalable solutions that consolidate 3D printing as a cornerstone of modern industrial production. After all, despite much promise, most manufacturing companies are still encountering obstacles to the introduction of 3D printing in series production. According to a survey (2023: by B2B International of 327 manufacturers in the US, Germany and Japan), companies see 3D printing as an important trend in manufacturing, but almost all companies (98%) face challenges and barriers to adopting 3D printing, such as a lack of expertise, perceived high costs and sometimes overly complex integration into established processes. Overcoming these hurdles will require more than individual efforts; it will take industry-wide collaboration to make the technology more accessible to a wider range of manufacturers.
Advancing 3D printing together
Materialise's booth at Formnext with a TV screen reading "Leading Minds Consortium", booth text reading "Make a Difference | Your AM software and manufacturing partner from design to production" and 3D printed gears representing the companies (Image: © Materialise NV)As the discussion shifts from "Why should we adopt 3D printing?" to "How can we integrate it effectively?", manufacturers are looking for concrete strategies to overcome the obstacles that exist. The Leading Minds consortium was founded as a direct response to these challenges. The consortium brings together some of the most innovative and influential companies in the 3D printing industry. The founding members - Ansys, EOS, HP, Materialise, Nikon SLM, Renishaw, Stratasys and Trumpf - are all convinced of the power of 3D printing, some of them even dedicating themselves primarily to additive manufacturing. Each member has individually pushed the boundaries of what is possible with 3D printing and now wants to work together to make 3D printing more accessible and scalable across different industries. However, the consortium is open to the inclusion of other companies.
Leading-Minds will stand for a shared commitment to reshape the future of manufacturing through the transformative power of 3D printing. The consortium aims to tackle the most pressing challenges facing manufacturers today. These include improving production efficiency, reducing waste and enabling faster, more responsive supply chains. Through these efforts, one goal of the consortium is to help create a more adaptable, sustainable and versatile manufacturing ecosystem.
Working together to realize industry-wide solutions
The main goal of the Leading Minds consortium is to raise awareness of the possibilities of 3D printing across more industries and remove the barriers that manufacturers face.
This collaborative effort is not just about improving 3D printing, but also about taking practical, actionable steps to make manufacturing more innovative, sustainable and advanced. Thus, the consortium's first step is to address the fragmentation and complexity of industry nomenclature to ensure that all players can work with a clearer understanding of the possibilities of 3D printing. Currently, many companies and technologies use different terminologies for similar concepts, making effective collaboration difficult and limiting the full potential of 3D printing in industrial production. To solve this "modern tower of Babel" scenario, the consortium intends to develop a common language framework that achieves better communication and enables manufacturers and technology providers to work together more effectively.
Interestingly, post-processing still plays a subordinate role in all these considerations. But that can (and should) change in the future...
